Nigel Farage / Twitter
- Donald Trump says he may meet with "very good guys" Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage when he arrives in the UK next week.
- Johnson is the current favourite to replace Theresa May as prime minister this summer, while Farage’s Brexit Party won the recent European elections in the UK.
- Trump’s visit is controversial in the UK with the House of Commons speaker John Bercow previously banning the president from speaking in parliament.
- Visit Business Insider’s home page for more stories.
LONDON — Donald Trump has said he may meet with Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage when he visits the country next week, lauding them as "very good guys" and "big powers" in the United Kingdom.
The US President said on Thursday that he may meet with Johnson, who is the current frontrunner to replace Theresa May as Conservative leader and prime minister, during his state visit to the UK on June 3-5.
Trump said that Johnson was a "friend" and suggested that he could meet him when he visits the UK.
He also paid tribute to Brexit Party leader Farage, who he congratulated on a "big victory" in last week’s European elections. The Brexit Party won 32% of the national vote despite being just weeks old.
"Nigel Farage is a friend of mine. Boris is a friend of mine. They are two very good guys, two very interesting people," Trump told journalists in footage released this afternoon.
"Nigel has had a big victory. He picked up 32% of the vote, starting from nothing.
"I think they are big powers over there. I think they’ve done a good job."
Asked whether he wanted Johnson to replace May as prime minister in the upcoming Conservative leadership contest, he said: "Well I like them they’re friends of mine but I haven’t thought about supporting them.
"Maybe it’s not business to support people. But I have lot of respect for those men."
Trump is set to be greeted by huge protests when he visits the UK next week.
Around 250,000 people are expected to protest in London and other cities around the country against what the Stop Trump campaign describes as Trump’s "divisive politics and policies of bigotry, hate and greed."
The US President is set to meet the Queen and take part in D-day commemorations during his visit.
See Also:
- Philip Hammond warns he could bring down the UK government if the new prime minister attempts a no-deal Brexit
- Justin Amash says ‘a lot of’ Republican lawmakers agree with him that Trump should be impeached but won’t say it publicly
- Boris Johnson will face court over claims he lied during Brexit referendum
Source: Business Insider – apayne@businessinsider.com (Adam Payne)